Davy Crockett: Coonskin Hero
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For most modern Americans, the preeminent Alamo hero is Davy Crockett, popularized in the mid-1950s by a wildly successful Walt Disney television feature. The famous Tennessee backwoodsman had arrived in Texas in January 1836, hoping to start life anew after losing his bid for a fourth term in Congress. Already, he was a well-known folk hero, "half-horse, half-alligator," whose impossible adventures were spread across the country by tall tales, comic almanacs, a long-running stage play, and even crafty politicians hoping to enlist the western vote. Although contemporary portraits of Crockett usually depict him in gentlemanly attire (or, rarely, in a cloth hunting suit with a broad-rimmed hat), the legendary Davy portrayed by artists and moviemakers is rarely seen without buckskin jacket and coonskin cap. |